Diageo Confirms Smirnoff Review

We first started hearing murmurs about this yesterday, and now, we’ve received confirmation from Diageo itself that the spirits giant has launched a global creative review for its vodka brand, Smirnoff. According to Diageo, the company will be handling the review itself and it will consist of “a closed shortlist of agencies.” And yes, JWT New York, which has handled the account for 13 years, has been invited to participate in the pitch.

In a statement, Edward Pilkington, global category director for vodka, rum and gin at Diageo, says, “We have enjoyed a long and successful relationship with JWT during which time we have seen the Smirnoff vodka brand grow into the largest premium spirit brand in the world from 15.1m cases to 26.3 million cases. However, we feel the time is right to refresh the thinking on Smirnoff in order to align with our bold future vision for the brand.”

It’s been some time since we covered Smirnoff, but in recent years, the brand has worked with JWT on, among other things, its campaign with Madonna, who was named “global nightlife ambassador” back in 2011.